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Completed TRL 1 (started at 1, targeting 2)
It is hypothesized that the additional H-bonding sites on the ionic polyamides are responsible for the shape-memory behaviors as there is very little difference in the chemical compositions of ionic polyamides and ionic polyamides other than the H-bonding donor and acceptor sties. When sliced/cut/shredded, the particles of the ionic polyamides also exhibit self-healing behavior and will fuse back together over short time scales (seconds to minutes). The physical and mechanical properties of ionic polyamides have been of interest to modelers for decades 1-5, but past work has not provided the level of understanding needed to describe all the intermolecular forces and shape-memory behaviors involved in polymer folding.
This holds great promise for developing multiple material platforms to meet the demands of manufacturing lightweight components with unique thermal/conductivity/physical properties for use within the aerospace applications via In-Space Manufacturing. Understanding these physical and thermal properties is critical to setting the operating parameters of the 3-D printer for additive manufacturing as well as the functional range of objects produced from the ionic polyimides.
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